The Sunlit Ground
by owakoblack
Summary: After a very cold winter night, Sirius and James found their dear friend Remus didn’t come back from the Whomping Willow. What had happened to him?
1. Chapter 1

**Notes**: JKRolwing owns most of the characters, and surely this fan fiction is not for commercial use. It is merely for my and hopefully your entertainment. Millions of thanks to **Vaughn**, who was very kind to beta read my fiction and very careful to correct my hundreds of errors. I like her very much!

**The Sunlit Ground**

**Chapter One**

Sirius Black, eleven, who was the heir of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black, Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, London, had a very abnormal life. First of all, all the members of his family were witches and wizards; secondly, he was punished more frequently and fiercely than the children in the same age for his rebelliousness; thirdly, when most of the children in London went to local schools, he started his new school in Scotland, which had a strange name, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

It was on September the first, 1971, that our little hero, Sirius, boarded a train called Hogwarts Express, and started his journey far away from home. It was the first time that he left home without his family's company, but he did not feel scared or lonely. He had been cooped up in, in his opinion, a big mad house for about eleven years, and although there were still school holidays for going home, he left the house finally.

When Sirius was looking for a compartment to settle down in, he suddenly felt somebody bump into him.

"Sorry, I'm looking for…er…" a bespectacled boy with very untidy black hair said embarrassedly.

"A compartment? Me too." Sirius smiled at him. He was in a very good mood and tried to be friendly to everyone.

"Yeah…but not only a compartment. I'm looking for someone too. Honestly, a girl." The boy smiled back blushingly. "Ah, there's an empty compartment at the end of the corridor. Let's get in."

They both got in, and it took them a moment to realise that this compartment was not empty—it was hard to notice, but they at last saw it—a boy was crouching in a dark corner in front of a seat, his face hiding in his oily black hair. Apparently, he was reading a book, but Sirius didn't know why he was hiding there, and finally he raised his slimy head and stared at them with an glaring eye—the other one was still obsured by shadow.

Both of Sirius's eyes stared back at the boy. The unfriendly guy made his good mood suddenly change.

The untidy-haired boy stepped forwards, and said loudly, "Never expected we would meet again so soon, Snape, 'ey? And what're you reading?"

"_The_ _Guide to the Dark World_, a book on Dark Arts," Sirius said. He had seen the same book in his father's study.

"No wonder you're feeling guilty—curling like an ugly giant spider under the seat," the other boy said sarcastically.

"You!" Snape tried to stand up, but he hit his head under the edge of the seat.

"'You' what?" continued the boy, "I, unlike you, dislike Dark Arts; and I, unlike you, fix any git that learns Dark Arts!"

Snape suddenly pulled out his wand and pointed at the boy, but Sirius said, "_Expelliarmus_!"

Snape's wand flew out of his hand at once, and he fell onto the floor.

"First tryout of my new wand. Elder and dragon heartstring, fourteen inches." Sirius grinned.

The boy held out a hand, and grinned, too. "My name's James Potter. Nice to meet you."

Sirius held out a hand to shake. "I'm Sirius Black. Nice to meet you."

"Black? Not the 'Noble and Most Ancient' Black family?" James looked incredulously at him.

"Unfortunately it is." Sirius smiled grimly.

James paused a moment, then patted Sirius's shoulder and winked. "Come to my bright side, mate!"

"It's more than I wish." Sirius grinned more broadly to James. "Let's leave this oily git alone."

Shoulder to shoulder, they left that compartment with laughter.

It seemed that the second compartment they just entered was brighter, though like the former one, there was a student sitting there.

The boy couldn't have been older than eleven, for his size was much smaller than Sirius himself. He was rather thin and peaky, but his light brown hair made him look very pleasant, and he was fast asleep, half of his face leaning against the window. And he didn't even stir when Sirius and James made a big noise as they entered.

"Shh!" Sirius put a finger to his mouth, and James stopped talking.

They sat in silence opposite the boy for a long while, and finally James couldn't resist and spoke, "Sirius, we can talk in low voices. That won't wake him up."

"Ah? What?" Sirius asked. James just found Sirius gazing at the boy, not paying any attention to the conversation.

"Sirius, do you have a younger brother?" James asked seriously.

"Yes, a year younger than me. He's my favourite."

"No wonder that. The boy looks lovely but too peaky. You can feed him with some food, 'ey, _dear brother_?" James pressed his elbow against Sirius's, jokingly.

Sirius blushed and said, "You just reminded me.. I did bring some chocolate and cakes with me. Want to share?" He took them out of his package.

"Thanks, I'd like that." James took a bar of chocolate from Sirius's hand.

"I wonder when he'll wake up. It's lunch time, anyway. He must be hungry," Sirius whispered, giving a piece of cake to James.

The boy stirred and opened his eyes—a pair of big, bright eyes.

Sirius blushed at once, and uttered, "I'm sorry…I didn't mean to wake you up."

The boy gazed at him with his big eyes, blushing a little, too, but didn't speak. Maybe he was embarrassed that he was watched by two strangers while he was sleeping.

"I'm James Potter." James broke the embarrassment with a big smile. "Nice to meet you!"

"I'm Sirius Black. How do you do?" Sirius said carefully.

The boy lowered his head, speaking to the floor, "Remus Lupin."

Sirius and James exchanged a startled look at each other, and James shrugged. But Sirius handed a bar of chocolate to Remus, and smiled mildly. "Have chocolate then, Remus."

Out of James's expectation, Remus accepted the chocolate at once with a quiet "Thanks," unwrapped it, and started to eat.

The tense atmosphere soon disappeared, and Sirius was happy to pick all the food from his package and share with his two new friends.

James and he talked and laughed a lot during the journey; although Remus was quiet, his presence was very pleasant for Sirius, and Sirius was pleased to see Remus's every smile that caused by his and James's jokes.

The three of them kept company until they arrived at Hogwarts, then to the castle by boat, and finally into the Great Hall, where the Sorting started.

Sirius was called first. When he went towards the Sorting Hat on the high table, he heard students whisper—

"Is he from the Black family, the 'Noble and Most...?'"

"I'm sure he is. And he's the heir of Black. He needn't put on that hat, because the answer's very clear."

"Yeah, all the Blacks are sorted into Slytherin House. They're pure-bloods and all…"

Sirius became nervous when he put on the hat. He remembered what his mother had said on a night about five years ago, 'You can never leave the house. It's your destiny.' But the rebelliousness in him made him have a desire that night, that he would struggle against his destiny.

"Another Black?" He heard the hat say. "I can put you into the house of Slytherin, but there is something curious…"

_No, not Slytherin_, he thought, _if all the Blacks are in Slytherin, I won't. I hate being a "noble" Black…_

"Not Slytherin? Which house do you intend to get in, then?" the hat asked.

An image suddenly flashed across his head. It was a four-legged creature with burning furs—the one he saw on that night in front of a veil.

A lion. Yes, he was definitely sure of that.

"A lion?" the hat mused. "Ah, I see. Then better be—Gryffindor!"

The Great Hall fell into a sudden hush as the hat finally announced its decision. The teachers and students all looked at this black-haired boy, who was very good-looking and comparatively taller than others in his own age, and now he stood up from the chair, looking so graceful, haughty, and proud.

"Hurrah! Congratulations to you, Sirius!" it was James who first broke the silence, shouting and waving.

Soon a round of loud applause erupted from Gryffindor table, which Sirius was stalking towards, but at the same time a wave of hisses was heard all around Slytherin table.

"Potter, James!" Professor McGonagall called before the sound finally settled down.

As soon as James put on the hat, it shouted, "Gryffindor!"

"Welcome, mate!" Sirius dashed to hug him in the sea of applause.

It seemed like a dream to Sirius that night—he finally left that dark house and got onto the sunlit ground. Although it was only the first step, his dream came true.

To Sirius's delight, Remus was sorted into Gryffindor too, and he also shared the same dormitory with Sirius.

Their dormitory was different from others because only four students lived in it, including Sirius, James, Remus, and a small plumpy boy called Peter Pettigrew. Sirius hoped he could lived in a five-person dormitory so that it could be more interesting, but it happened that the number of the first-year students left a spare bed in a dormitory, and Sirius was unluckily in this one.

But at the same time, Sirius was the luckiest among the first-years because he lived in the same dormitory with his friends James and Remus, and Peter, who he knew merely who he had barely known when he entered the dormitory, but had already became his close friend, too.

"What're you doing, Sirius?" asked James.

"Writing to my brother Regulus. He must feel lonely when I'm away." Sirius looked worried.

"You're a rather considerate brother." James winked at Remus, who was reading a book in bed. "Isn't he, Remus?"

Remus frowned slightly in response James's question, and went on reading.

Peter came to Sirius's desk, and smiled. "Yes, you're very kind, Sirius. And I do hope your brother's fine."

"Thank you, Peter." Sirius smiled back.

The next day at breakfast, Sirius, James and Peter sat eating side by side, but Remus, who came later after them, deliberately ignored the empty chair next to Sirius that his friends reserved for him, and sat several seats from them.

"What is it with him?" Sirius asked James when he found Remus didn't even look at them.

"Maybe Remus's too shy," said Peter when he drank a mouthful of pumpkin juice. "He's seldom talked to us since we've met, hasn't he?"

"Let me invite him over." James rose from his chair, but he stopped when a scary looking dark owl zoomed across the Great Hall, leaving a scarlet letter on the table right in front of Sirius.

"I can't believe it, Sirius! It's a Howler!" exclaimed Peter with widened eyes.

"Open it, Sirius," said James calmly.

Sirius opened it, and the Howler began to explode in Mrs. Valerie Black's horrible voice—

"SIIIRIUS BLAAACK! BELLA SENT ME AN OWL LAST NIGHT THAT YOU WERE SORTED INTO GRYFFINDOR HOUSE! DON'T KNOW WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU! I'M DISAPPOINTED AND I'M CONTACTING YOUR HEADMASTER TO CHANGE YOUR HOUSE! SHAAAME OF MY BLOOOD!"

James put his fingers into his ears until the Howler tore itself into pieces, but Peter was still trembling under the table. All the students in the hall were looking at Sirius (except Remus).

"That old _hag_." Sirius clentched his teeth angrily.

"Was it your mother?" asked James anxiously.

"She says she is," Sirius covered his face with a hand. "The point is, I don't want to change my house."

"You still have a hope. It is said that once you're sorted by the hat, it's impossible to change. And I know Professor Dumbledore's an impartial man. He won't be threatened by your dear old mum," James said.

"I hope so. I'll talk to him tonight." Sirius picked a piece of bread, only to find himself have no heart to eat at all, and dropped it on his plate.

The rest of the day made Sirius even more irritable. The first lesson of the new term was double Potions with the Slytherins in a dark, cold dungeon, where Sirius felt as if he went back to the house of Black again.

The Slytherins kept hissing behind him, and he occasionally caught some words like "blood traitor" and "ill-bred", which made him have an urge to hex them during the class.

When the bell rang, Sirius saw Remus hastily collecting his text book at the last row of the classroom, wanting to leave as quickly as he could.

James called to him enthusiastically, "Remus, let's go to the Transfiguration classroom together, OK?"

But Remus replied coolly, "No, thanks. I'm in a hurry."

He turned around and began to leave, but Sirius grabbed his arm, "Why're you so offish? I think we're friends, aren't we?"

"Dormates doesn't mean friends," Remus said in a low voice.

"What?" shouted Sirius irritatedly. "Say it again!"

"I mean we're not friends. And let go!" Remus struggled in Sirius's grasp.

"You!" Sirius raised his left fist.

"Sirius, calm down!" James dragged Sirius from Remus desperately.

Finally they were separated, and Remus ran away at once. Sirius stood panting heavily, eyes red with rage.

He didn't think that his first day at school would be so awful—he was on the edge of leaving his favourite house, and the person who he was very fond of at first sight turned out to be very unfriendly to anybody.

Night was even more cruel to our poor Sirius. When he returned to the dormitory accompanied by James, Peter gave him a letter that just was sent by an owl to him. It was from Regulus.

_Dear Siri,_

_You have left home only for a day, but I begin to miss you now. I'm so glad that you're sorted into your favourite house and you have new friends._

_Mum leaves for Bulgaria this afternoon. She tried to persuade your headmaster to change your house into Slytherin, but your headmaster firmly refused, so she is going to the headmaster of Durmstrang in order to deal with your school transference. Mum's trying to transfer you to Durmstrang, dear brother. I know you won't be willing to go there, because you told me you don't like Dark Arts, and nor am I willing to see you go so far away, although Scotland is far enough from London._

_Mum is not pleased that I write a letter to you, Siri, so I sent it after she's gone. Sorry for the lateness._

_Take care of yourself and don't worry about me._

_Love,_

_Reggie_

With a loud _bang_, Sirius hit the desk with his right fist heavily. Then he began to cast text books against the wall angrily, without regards to James and Peter's dissuasion.

Last night, he had been very proud to think that he won the game, but now he found himself still too weak to escape from her mother's grip. Thinking he would leave his dear friends and go to a dark school he didn't like, and even his correspondence with Regulus, who needed him so much, was restricted by his mother, he hated being a Black, hated his so-called destiny.

During the following two weeks, Sirius stayed in a bad mood and although he sometimes elicited a laugh from James, he was rather irritable and easily provoked by a small trifle.

Twice, he wanted to hex Bellatrix and her sixth-year Slytherin pal when they said he was a mutant of Black, but unfortunately they were much older and stronger than him, and they threw him into a lake. If it had not been for Andromeda, who came to stop them in time, he could have been eaten by the giant squid.

And Sirius also spent five nights on detention with James by successfully hexing Snape five times. Hexing Snape was James's great fun and Sirius never denied he enjoyed it. Many students enjoyed watching them fight against Snape, too. Snape had been an extremely unpopular guy since his first day at school, while Sirius and James gained their popularity by going against him. In fact, most students (even in the higher grades) were afraid of Snape because he knew many Dark Arts they did not know, so among the first-year students, Sirius and James were the only two who were able to hex him. Students never considered their anti-Snape actions as evil; on the contrary, they thought Sirius and James were brilliant and brave, the height of cool.

Nevertheless, Sirius didn't care in the least about his increasing popularity among students, because as long as he met Remus during class or in the dormitory, who hadn't spoken to him since that day, he thought he himself was a very unpopular Black enough that even his dormate didn't speak to him. Everyone knew it was not Sirius's fault because Remus seldom talked to others either. Remus always kept himself alone, whenever he had class, ate dinner, or to study in the common room. People do need help from others, and James knew it, so he always told Remus which classroom they would have their next classes when the timetable was changed temporally, and reminded him kindly if he made mistakes or forgot something. Although Remus mumbled a little "thanks" to James every time in return, Sirius was quite irritated by his frost. But James always smiled and said, "You should be generous to dormates, Sirius."

Indeed, James's generosity and tolerance made him get new friends easily, and Frank Longbottom and Kingsley Shacklebolt became his good friends after Sirius and Peter, but just like Sirius, he sometimes had to doubt his popularity in the face of a red-haired girl. It seemed James had been keeping an eye on her since the beginning of this term, and tried to strike up a conversation with her, without success. Even worse, James found Lily started to hate him as the number of times that he hexed Snape increased.

All in all, no matter how awful their relationship to others, both Sirius and James felt very lucky to have each other as the best friend. Although they had met less than two weeks ago, they had already been as close as twin brothers—it was not only they kept in company wherever they went, but also they could sometimes understand each other without words; in other words, they had privities.

That day happened to be a cool sunny autumn day, a day that makes you feel liking flying into the deep blue sky. However, most Gryffindor first-years forgot the pleasant weather outside when they were drifting between dreams and reality during Professor Binns's History of Magic lesson.

Suddenly, a sound of the opening door broke the silence, and some students opened their sleepy eyes.

"Sorry, Professor Binns, but I want Mr. Black immediately. His mother, Mrs. Black, is waiting in the Great Hall," said Professor McGonagall urgently.

Sirius stood up from his seat at once, waking up James, who said, "What? What?"

"Is Professor Dumbledore with her?" Sirius asked.

"No, he's gone out of the school for a few days," said McGonagall.

Sirius and James exchanged an anxious look, then James nodded, and Sirius said, "Alright, Professor, I'll go."

He followed McGonagall until the outside of the door, then suddenly a loud _bang_ of an explosion erupted from behind, and several students screamed.

"Merlin, what happened?" McGonagall hurried back into the classroom.

When she was out of sight, Sirius turned around and ran down to the corridor.

If he saw his mother now, he might be sent home at once, and then transferred to Durmstrang. But if he was not caught today, he could hide away from his mother until Dumbledore was back at school, then he might be able to help Sirius in remaining in Hogwarts. So he ran as fast as his legs could carry him, and soon he arrived at the entrance of the West Tower.

To Sirius's great shock, Sirius saw Bellatrix and her Slytherin gang waiting with wands in their hands right outside. _Damn it, Bella! How did you know I'd run away?_ Sirius turned back quickly to the tower, trying hard not to be seen.

It was too late. Sirius's hair stood on end when he heard a Slytherin boy shout, "Bella, he's there!" Bellatrix gave a wave, and the whole gang ran after her.

The situation was very desperate. Sirius almost ran out of energy as he ran upstairs, but hearing the thundering steps of the Slytherins behind him, he had no choice but to run.

Finally he reached the top floor of the tower, and ran into a room to hide himself. It was Professor Flitwick's office, and fortunately nobody was there.

Outside, the chasing footsteps slowed down, and Sirius knew that they separated into small groups to look for him.

Soon they would find him, but Sirius didn't know where to run. He looked around the office, and his eyes fell upon the window. The window was the only way to the outside besides the door, but it was on the seventh floor and if he jumped out of the window, surely he would crash into pieces before he could escape. Sirius approached to the window as he mused, and he saw a person on the outside ground waving to him.

It was James. Sirius was very excited to see his best friend when he was in such a desperate situation, but he had no idea that how James could help him. He saw James make a "come-on" gesture, asking him to jump.

"Are you sure? It is on the seventh floor!" Sirius mouthed, jabbing to the inner room to show the impossibility.

James nodded quickly, making the gesture again.

At this moment, the office door burst open, and Bellatrix and a blond seventh-year boy dashed in.

"Sirius, you have no way to run now! Go to see your mother!" Bellatrix bellowed, wand at the ready.

"For me, there's always a way to the light." Sirius sneered at her, then jumped out of the window.

Bellatrix and the blond boy remained still with wide-opened mouths, thunderstruck.

The wind was blowing heavily around Sirius, making him narrow his eyes, but he was still able to see James's enlarging figure from the gaps of his eyes as he was falling nearer towards his friend.

With James's loud "oh", Sirius landed onto the ground, knocking him down, or, bouncing him down, because the small patch of ground around James was as elastic as a spring bed, and that was the reason why Sirius was able to land on safely without getting hurt.

"It was a Bouncing Charm," James said proudly, and cast a spell so that the ground became solid again. "I learned it only yesterday."

"Thanks a lot, mate," Sirius got to his feet first, giving James a hand to get up.

"Thank me later. We have to find a place to hide you," James said as he and Sirius hurried away from the tower. "But the point is, Slytherins are looking for you around the castle. Where to hide you?"

They heard someone moving behind a tree, and they both jumped. But when they found the person was no other than Remus, they relaxed. Although Remus was not the friendly kind of person Sirius thought when he first met him, somehow Sirius could tell Remus's existence could calm you down.

And Remus said seriously, "I know a very secret place that only me and a few staff members know. Please follow me."

Then Remus went westwards, away from the castle, and they followed, for they had no choice with the Slytherins looking for Sirius, and they felt the sincerity in Remus.

Remus led them to a tree called the Whomping Willow,which whomped anything that tried to get close to it, and threw a stone to its trunk. The tree didn't move immediately.

There was an entrance to a tunnel under the willow which Sirius and James had never noticed before, and Remus said, "Both of you better get into the tunnel to hide, for they've already known that James's helping you, Sirius. I will remain outside to get information. Please remember: don't go too far into it, otherwise I can't find you if something urgent happens."

Remus turned around to leave, but he paused as Sirius said behind him, blushing, "Thanks, Remus."

"Not at all," Remus gave Sirius a small smile, and left.

The tunnel Sirius and James went in was very dark, so they lightened the tips of their wands with a Lumos spell, and sat down on the ground.

For a very long time they kept in silence, and finally Sirius no longer looked at the ground, but lifted up his head to speak to James, "He's not that bad, is he?"

"Remus? No, I never think he's bad. On the contrary, I know he's very kind-hearted. He's only pretending."

"How do you know?" Sirius asked.

"I know, Sirius." James waved an impatient hand. "Because every time when he refuses our invitation, the look on his face is not annoyed or defiant, but regretful and sad."

"What? I didn't ever notice that," Sirius gasped at James incredulously. "How observant you are!"

"No, no, the look is quite obvious. Old prejudices die hard, Sirius. When Remus said he's not your friend, you were very disappointed and angry, plus you were in a bad mood that day, you believed he's an unfriendly person. That's why I suggested to you to be generous to others, Sirius. Only in this way can you see through others."

Sirius couldn't agree with James more, but he was not glad to hear James say he was not generous. So he ignored it and continued, "What'd you think he's pretending for?"

"I have no idea," James frowned slightly. "It seems he's disserving himself. I hope I could help him."

"Me too," said Sirius quickly.

James grinned. "Yes, he needs your protection, _dear brother_."

"Well, I…" Sirius blushed. "He's not my brother, and nobody could replace Reggie."

"I know, I know, Sirius. I was only joking." James was still grinning. "I know Regulus's very important to you, because he's the only one who loves you in that house whilst you were cooped up in it all around the year and had no friends, right?"

"Even if I had loads of friends, I would love Reggie the best. He means more than a brother and friend to me," Sirius said solemnly.

"You're lucky. Although you seldom had a friend in your past, the only one who you love loves you too. I had many friends before I went to Hogwarts, and they're still my friends, except one. We haven't met again for five years, and when I met her, she didn't recognise me. Even worse, the more she feels annoyed by me, the more I want to talk to her. And at last, I feel I fancy her."

"You don't mean she's Lily Evans?" Sirius was surprised. "I didn't know you had been friends! It seems she doesn't like you…oh, sorry, James," Sirius regretted what he just said when he saw the sad look on James's face.

"It's OK, Sirius. I know it, too." James gave a wry smile. "After all, Evans and I were only one-night friends. It happened on a summer night when I was six. I flew on a broomstick under my father's Invisibility Cloak—my father didn't allow me ride a broomstick outside Godric's Hollow, you know—and when I was flying across a Muggle residence in Surrey, I saw a little girl standing on a veranda, long, dark auburn hair blowing in the night wind. Apparently she was praying, and her hands were put together as she spoke to the starry sky, "I wish I could use magic one day."

"She's a Muggle-born?"

"Of course. I guess she didn't know she possessed the magic gift at that time, and nor did I. So I couldn't resist the urge of showing her some magic, and I landed on the veranda, pulling off the cloak. She didn't suspect that I was an intruder. In contrast, she was very excited when I told her I could let her ride the broomstick with me. That night both of us had a wonderful moment. But only one night."

"Why didn't you visit her again?"

"We forgot to put on the Invisibility Cloak when we flew, and were seen by many Muggles. My father was blamed by the Ministry of Magic, so he forbade me to do it again. It was a pity that we even didn't know each other's name," James said sadly.

"Then how did you recognise her five years later?"

"We met at Ollivander's on the day before the new term. I overheard she said she's from Surrey, and judging by her outstanding appearance, I recognised her at once. But the problem was, she didn't recognise me at all. I think maybe it's because I wear spectacles now and have become ugly and clumsy…"

Sirius let out a bark of laughter. "No, you're not! But the spectacles are really a problem, though. Why don't you tell her you were friends?"

"I've tried," James sighed, "but I always lost the chance. And one day, after I gave Snivellus a fine hex, she said to me, 'If I could not use magic, I would not have seen such an arrogant, bullying toerag like you.' I was deeply shocked, Sirius, I was. I dare not tell her I was that boy from then on."

Sirius looked at him sympathetically, but didn't know what to say.

Suddenly, they heard somebody coming into the tunnel. To their delight, it was Professor Dumbledore with Remus behind him.

"I have good news to tell you, Mr. Black, you can remain in Gryffindor House for as long as seven years." Dumbledore smiled behind his half-moon spectacles.

"Really?" Sirius jumped to his feet excitedly.

"I'm definitely sure it is true, Mr. Black," Dumbledore continued. "Your mother, Mrs. Valerie Black, has left Hogwarts."

"Yes, it's really a piece of good news, sir. But can I ask you how you managed to persuade her?"

"I didn't persuade her, Mr. Black. She can't transfer you to Durmstrang Institude because the transfer is invalid."

"Invalid?"

"Yes. As we all know, only a transfer that has been signed by the Headmaster of Durmstrang could be valid. Fortunately, it happened that I visited the Headmaster Alexander Nonv this week, and he told me that he had gave Mrs. Black the permission— that you can transfer from my school to Durmstrang. I was not pleased to hear that because she transferred my student without my permission. Alexander happened to be a good friend of mine, and he reconsidered your transference. However, Mrs. Black had already taken the transfer signed by Alexander with her back to London."

"What did you do then?" asked Sirius.

"First of all , we should know that, by regulation, the Headmaster of Durmstrang doesn't sign his signature by permanent ink ,but by a kind of ink that can do anagrams. Only a few people know this secret, and when they want to sign an agreement with the Headmaster, they'll make an Unbreakable Vow with him instead of signing on the paper. However, Mrs. Black didn't know Alexander had changed his signature on the transfer by using a spell at Durmstrang far away. When I requested her to show me the transfer, she was startled that Alexander Nonv's signature had rearranged into '_An elver and an ox_'."

"That's brilliant!" Both Sirius and James laughed their heads off, and Durmbledore laughed in his long silver beard.

"What's her reaction next?" Sirius forced himself not to laugh.

"She was very upset, so I comforted her, 'Mr. Black is a talented child, and he is more than fit to be a Gryffindor for his courage. Bravery is a more precious gift than pure-blood, Mrs. Black.'"

James patted Sirius's shoulder, and said, "Hear, hear." Sirius smiled back at him.

"Before I go, Mr. Black and Mr. Potter," Dumbledore said, "I have to command both of you not to go back to this tunnel _ever again_, or tell_ anyone _about the Whomping Willow. Remus broke the school rule to hide you here, and if you disclose the secret or come back here, he will be punished, understand?"

"Yes, sir, we promise you," said Sirius and James at the same time.

Dumbledore nodded, smiling. "Excellent. I have to go first. There is a letter left to write to thank for old Alexander's sherbet lemons."

When Dumbledore walked out of the tunnel, Sirius said to James and Remus, "Thanks very much. If it had not been the help from both of you, I would not have stayed in Hogwarts."

"Don't mention it, mate. I don't want you leave here, either," James winked at Sirius.

Remus shook his head blushingly, but said nothing.

Sirius gazed at him for a long while, biting his lips as if making his decision, then finally spoke, "Remus, you said we were friends. But will you accept me as your friend now?"

"Well, I…" Remus looked at Sirius awkwardly, big brown eyes gleaming in the dark, then suddenly smiled, and said, "I accept."

Sirius was unable to hide his excitement but grinned broadly. "We're friends now."

"Can we make friends too, Remus?" James jumped from behind Sirius.

"Yes, of course." Remus smiled.

Outside the tunnel, the autumn sun was shining brightly in the middle of the sky, which was cerulean and seemed to be getting wider. Sirius, James, and Remus were walking together among the golden trees, where the landscape was as beautiful as an oil painting.

_It was a season that belonged to glory and freedom._

**END**


	2. Chapter 2

**Rate**: PG-13

**Pairing**: Sirius/Remus

**Genre**: angst & romance

**Disclaimer**: JK Rowling owns all the characters, and surely this fan fiction is not for commercial use. It is merely for my, and hopefully, your entertainment.

**Spoilers**: slightly mentioned HBP

**Summary**: After a very cold winter night, Sirius and James found their dear friend Remus didn't come back from the Whomping Willow. What had happened to him?

**Notes**: **Miss Vaughn **was very kind to beta read my fiction for the third time! A million thanks to her! She's the best beta I've ever met. She's very careful and gave me many wise suggestions. I love her very much! And my thanks to my friend **Ning He** (I hope that she doesn't mind I put her name in such an order). She suggested me to change "chicken soup" into "sandwich" and change " meadow" into "wildland" giggle

**Chapter Two**

In a dark room, a little boy lay on the floor, unconscious. His naked body was covered with blood, some large wounds still bleeding. There were many scratches and blood stains on the floor and furniture, as if some ferocious beast had been here for a whole night.

As the first ray of the morning sun came into the room through a window and landed on the boy's pale and blood-stained face, he opened his eyes wearily. He stirred a little, and felt severe pains all over his body, then remembered what had happened last night, and what he had to do next.

"They're waiting for me," the boy murmured, then reached for a robe to cover himself, and crawled to his feet by the support of a wall.

It was very difficult for him to walk, but he managed not to faint again, and staggered out of the room.

That day proved to be a sunny November day, and Sirius knew it as he was walking jovially down the corridor to have breakfast with James and Peter, greeting everyone who passed by with a big smile—it was a heart attack for most of the girls.

When Sirius arrived at the Great Hall, to his delight, Remus was waving to them from Gryffindor table, with three empty seats next to him.

_But no, not again._ Sirius sighed when he saw the bandages on Remus's neck, which were carefully hidden under his collars, but still was not able to escape Sirius's keen eyes.

Before James and Peter had noticed anything, Sirius strode towards Remus and sat down next to his friend. "I had told you to take care of yourself, and what's the reason that you got hurt this time?" he said angrily.

"Sorry, Sirius, I was rather careless that I…I fell off a ladder…" Remus said apologetically.

"Well, last month you were injured in a Muggle car accident when you were on the way to see your sick mother, and now you are hurt again!" Sirius shouted.

"It doesn't matter at all. Only a small part that…"

Before Remus could finished his sentence, Sirius grabbed his right arm suddenly, and drew up the sleeve—a heavily bandaged arm revealed itself.

"Explain!" Sirius shouted at Remus, who looked very baffled.

"Sirius, treat him better, OK? Remus's hurt," said James, who came between them later. "And Remus, why don't you stay in the hospital wing?"

"I have to take lessons." Remus smiled mildly. "Moreover, Madam Pomfrey's medicine will heal my wounds as good as new in a day."

"But you should have stayed there until they all healed," Sirius said impatiently. "Sometimes I really don't understand your strange behaviours, and I think you're concealing something from us…"

Suddenly, a scary looking dark owl zoomed into the hall, interrupting Sirius.

"Salome, our home owl. It must be from Reggie," said Sirius, unsealing the letter that was just sent to him.

_Dear Siri,_

_I'm very sorry that I was unable to reply to your letters these days, because I'm under Mum's watch. Mum says this is the last letter I can write to you, Siri._

_Since she has been back from Hogwarts, she treats me more strictly and gives me more lessons. I'm rather scared of the Dark Arts she teaches, but I have no choice. However, nothing could make me more upset than the fact that she forbids my correspondence with you, my dear brother. Mum says you are out of her control when you are at school, but she still has me in hand. Although I am not as brave as you, Siri, I think I will get over it before you come home next summer._

_Sorry I can't write to you anymore, but I'll miss you._

_Take care of yourself._

_Love as always,_

_Reggie_

After Sirius read Regulus's letter, he felt his head aching, as if the world around him was dazzling, making him blind. However, he didn't lose his temper this time, for before he did it, somebody's hand was on his own hand—it was cold, but very pleasant, calming him down.

As he removed his other hand that covered his face, he saw it was Remus's badly bandaged hand.

Two days later, when Sirius was about to head to supper, James seized him by the hand, and said, "You forget what day it is, mate?"

"Your birthday?"

"No, it's Bonfire Night," said James.

"But we don't observe it at Hogwarts. What's the fun in it for us?"

"We celebrate it _outside_, then." James winked. "Come on, we'll bring Remus and Peter, and walk under my Invisibility Cloak to Hogsmeade. We can build a bonfire in a wildland and sit around it."

"James, I didn't know you were so crazy," Sirius concluded. "You're luring your friends into breaking the school rules."

"Will you risk getting detention for it?" James smiled.

"Of course." Sirius grinned.

They asked Peter later, who just walked out from the Transfiguration classroom with Remus, and he hesitated for a moment, but finally accepted their invitation happily. Then they asked Remus carefully, for he was a good student that cared about school rules, but to their surprise and excitement, Remus accepted it with a smile.

At night, in a very large wildland, a bonfire was flaming away merrily. Four boys were sitting around it and singing loudly: "Remember, remember the fifth of November," as great fireworks were displaying overhead. Lots of food, such as cheesey saucey sauce, Norfolk Hearts, and toffee apples that they obtained from the kitchen raid lay about their feet, and potatoes were shoved into the bottom of the bonfire.

"Boys, boys," James cleared his throat, standing up, "before the potatoes bake, let us do a Fire Divination. I just learnt it today."

"What do you do that for? I don't believe in destiny," said Sirius, biting a toffee apple.

"Practise makes perfect. You never can say you know it unless you can use it. And it seems a good chance tonight," James retorted.

"Do it, James. It's a good idea." Peter agreed with James.

"_Flammo_!" James cast a spell at the fire, but he couldn't see if anything changed in front of him.

"Can you see anything?" James asked Sirius as he leaned towards him, and saw a man's shadow reflect on the flame, his hair tangled and long.

"If it is a Divination, I don't think it means anything," Sirius said.

"What about you two, Remus and Peter?" James called to them, both of whom were examining the flame in front of them.

"I see a shadow that resembles a rat, but I don't know what it means," said Peter.

"A shadow of a man. Maybe it's myself after twenty years." Remus smiled. "What about you, James?"

James shrugged. "I see nothing."

"Told you Divination's rubbish. Future's unpredictable. The only one can control destiny is ourselves." Sirius unwrapped the foil covering a potato.

"Yes, future is unpredictable. And I don't know what the future might be. I just wish we could be friends forever," Remus said seriously, passing the pepper to Sirius.

"Why can't we be friends forever?" said Sirius matter-of-factly. "I believe we can because we all wish it so."

"Yeah, Sirius's right. Let the so-called destiny go to hell!" James said cheerfully. "Let's vow our forever friendship tonight!"

"For friendship!" The four of them raised their mugs.

As each of them had a mouthful of potato, Sirius saw a tear in Remus's eye.

"Thank you, James, Sirius, and Peter. I never thought I could have friends again," Remus said.

"I don't think such an amiable person like you could have no friends, and I'm so proud that I have a friend like you," said Sirius, smiling.

"I used to think Remus was very shy, but actually, he's as amiable as an angel," Peter added.

"For our amiable angel!" said James, raising his mug.

"For our Remus!" they chorused.

Remus wiped away his tears, then smiled more brightly than the others had ever seen before. And Sirius secretly wished he could see Remus smile forever.

At midnight, the four of them dragged their weary bodies back to the dormitory under the Invisibility Cloak, but very happily so.

The lights went out, and Sirius was putting on his pyjamas on his four-poster bed, but suddenly the curtain was drawn up, and an untidy head peeped in.

"James!" Sirius jumped, doing up the rest of his buttons more quickly.

"Don't be as easily frightened as a girl, Sirius." James gave him an evil smile. "Peter, Remus and I just want to share your bed."

Before Sirius could object, James jumped in, followed by Remus and Peter.

"Hah, we'll have a very warm night!" James wrestled Sirius down, pinning him on the bed, but Sirius's legs kicked James's belly, and then he turned him over, bestriding him.

"Be submissive, then, will you?" Sirius threatened.

"You bet." James grinned.

Remus blushed a little at this sight, and drew the bedclothes up to cover himself. "Let's sleep now. We still have lessons tomorrow," he implored.

Maybe all of them were tired out, and soon they fell asleep. It was funny to watch four boys sleeping in a bed—the bed was just large enough to hold four eleven-year-old boys, so they cuddled up together, feeling the heat emanating from each other's body, and breathing peacefully in one rhythm. But James finally felt the crowdedness in his sleep, and succeeded in kicking Sirius, who slept next to him, out of the bed.

Sirius, however, didn't wake up at all, and continued his dream in spite of coldness and discomfort. It seemed he had lost himself in the depths of a very odd dream.

In the dream, he grew into a man with long dark hair, just like the shadow he saw in the flame of the bonfire. He found himself standing in the middle of the hall of Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, which was rather derelict, and deserted. His voice echoed down the hall as he cried out, "Regulus!", but the only sound he heard was the echo of his voice. Despaired, he stopped calling his brother, and felt himself frozen in the sudden coldness and darkness, unable to move, or to cry.

Then he heard someone say quietly, "Sirius." And a hand reached out to touch his right hand from darkness; he remembered he had felt the same cold hand somewhere before, but his body became warmer, as if he was basking in the sunlight.

Next morning, when others were still sleeping, Sirius opened his eyes, and was surprised to find himself lying on the floor near his own bed. But what made him even more surprised was that his head was comfortably supported by a pillow, his body was covered by a thick blanket, and the fast-asleep Remus was crouching by his side, placing his palm upon Sirius's right one.

_Don't tell me he's been keeping this posture for a whole night!_ Sirius almost jumped, but he carefully removed Remus's hand from his own, lest his dear friend should be woken up.

Quietly, Sirius carried the pillow and the blanket to Remus's bed, and lifted Remus up with his arms—Remus's size was much smaller than Sirius's, so Sirius was able to carry him to the bed steadily without waking him up.

When Sirius just laid Remus onto the bed, and covered him with bedclothes, James woke up on his bed with a huge yawn, and said, "Morning, mate!"

Sirius shushed him at once, and said in a very low voice, "Let him sleep more for a while!"

December finally came, bringing lots of snow and northern wind. During several days in succession, hardly a student could be seen on the grounds of Hogwarts; they all sat in front of fireplaces in their spare time, listening to the blizzard roaring outside.

Night came much earlier than usual, but Sirius and James had lost track of time as they had spent a whole afternoon on cleaning the library.

"That old fox! We just wanted to teach the arrogant Slytherin Bighead Boy a lesson, why should he put us in detention?" complained Sirius.

"Filch is always siding with Malfoy," James sighed. "What a partial world! No wonder it's in war outside Hogwarts."

"Speaking of _outside_, have you noticed it's all dark now?" Sirius asked.

"Yeah, I'm starting to feel hungry, but we can't leave here. There're still some sections left to…"

At this moment, a boy approached them, interrupting James's speech—it was Remus, a dinner box in his hands.

"James, Sirius, I got dinner for you, for supper is over already." Remus held out the box, and James took it.

"Thank you!" James opened it. "Wow, steak sandwiches, your favourite, Sirius!"

But Sirius ignored him, and turned to Remus. "I thought you were going home tonight."

"Yeah, I'm going now, but I wanted to bring you dinner first," Remus said.

"You should've left earlier, for it's totally dark outside. How can you leave now?" Sirius asked worriedly.

"I have to, Sirius. I'll be back tomorrow," Remus promised.

"Then you should go now, quick," Sirius urged.

"Take care of yourself, Remus," James said.

Remus gave them a wave, and left.

James started to wolf down the dinner, but Sirius didn't move.

"Why don't you eat, Sirius? Remus was so kind to waste his precious time in bringing us this dinner."

"I'm wondering why he goes home once a month," Sirius said.

James stopped eating, and looked at him.

"Have you ever thought about why Remus always comes from home the next day with loads of wounds?" he continued.

James still stayed silent.

"And, have you ever noticed, that the day when he leaves every month…" Sirius paused, and went to the window, drawing up the curtain—the snow had stopped, and a moon was emerging from the clouds.

"Is _full moon_," they both said at the same time.

"Yes, I have noticed," James said, "that he's a _werewolf_."

"You knew it! Why didn't you tell me?" Sirius shook James fiercely.

"Remus doesn't want anybody know his secret, especially _us_." James tried to free Sirius's hand from his shoulder. "And what will you do, now that you know he's a werewolf? Abandon him?"

"Of course I won't! He's my _friend_!" Sirius shouted.

"That will do, Sirius. It makes no difference whether Remus's a werewolf or not, or we know Remus's a werewolf or not."

"I know… I just don't understand how such a kind person like him could be a ferocious beast once a month…"

"Most people don't want to be a werewolf, because they're dark creatures and driven out of human society. However, have you ever heard that many small children are attacked by werewolves who are Lord Voldemort's supporters?"

Sirius nodded. He remembered his mother never let Regulus and him go out at night, and one night when he ran away from home, his mother sent all her _dear_ snakes to find him.

"In order to enlarge the number of their werewolf fellows, they attack human children, and teach them—or they'll realise by themselves one day—that they should go against society, because society will go against them too. Sirius, what do you think would happen if Remus didn't go to Hogwarts?"

"You don't mean he'll join Voldemort when he grows up?" Sirius was shocked by the supposition.

"Probably. Because Remus doesn't think himself as an equal to us, he dared not make friends with us at first—partly because he didn't want his secret be discovered, of course—and if he continues separating himself from normal people, he might go to the dark side one day. Fortunately, he came to Hogwarts, and has us as his friends. Under our influence, he's become as normal as us."

"Not only normal, but…" Sirius was interrupted by a sudden sound from behind a book shelf, and he went to see who was behind it.

It was Peter, who seemed to have been hiding there for a long while, listening to their conversation.

"Sorry, James and Sirius, I didn't mean to…" Peter said timidly.

"Well, since you're our friend, you have the right to know," James said, "but please don't tell anybody, or let Remus know we know his secret, OK?"

"No, I won't say anything," Peter said.

Sirius hardly slept a wink that night—since he knew Remus was a werewolf, he was very anxious about Remus's transformation, wondering if he was still alright through such a cold winter night.

When morning finally came, Sirius jumped out of his bed, and found James in his school robes, ready to go out—he was not the only one who was worried about Remus.

They went quickly to the Great Hall, expecting poor Remus was waiting at the table for them, with bandages around his hands. However, Remus was not there.

_Maybe it's too early_, they thought. So they sat and waited, without eating anything.

Ten minutes, twenty minutes, thirty minutes…time seemed ticking away very slowly, but the Great Hall was full of students at last, and Peter came.

"James and Sirius, where's Remus?" he asked.

James shook his head, and Sirius stood up, and said, "I have to find him. Something must have happened."

"I'll go with you." James stood up too.

"Me too!" said Peter.

"No, listen, Peter," James said, "you go to class with the other students, and if Remus comes back, you can tell him where we have gone."

"Quick, James." Sirius started to run, and James followed.

"Good luck to you both!" Peter waved from behind them.

Sirius and James ran to the hospital wing first, where they found no Remus. And got to their feet again.

"Have you any clue where he could be?" panted Sirius as he was running down the corridor.

"The only clue I've got is the tunnel behind the Whomping Willow, which Remus led us to last time," James said breathlessly.

"Is it probable that he transforms there?"

"I think so. It's a secret place that only a few people know how to get into, and Remus can't wander freely in Hogwarts when he's a werewolf, can he?"

"You're right." Sirius ran even faster.

They ran out of the castle, down to the grounds, where was covered with thick white snow, and finally arrived at the Whomping Willow.

Sirius picked one of the branches that were scattered on the snow, and hit the trunk of the tree. The tree froze at once, and they got into the entrance at the roots of the tree, went through a very long tunnel, and found themselves in a dusty old house, where the floor and every piece of furniture were full of scratches made by some beast.

They searched every corner of the house, but found nobody there. Filled with despair, Sirius leant against a wall, gazing at the battered iron bar on a window, and murmured, "He must suffer a lot when he transforms into a werewolf…but where's he now? He did promise he'd be back…"

"Poor Remus, in such a cold winter night…it was freezing outside…hang on, did you notice why there were many branches at the entrance?" James asked.

"Could it be the werewolf that attacked the tree? Maybe he didn't get in here last night, and transformed at the entrance?" Sirius said anxiously.

"Probably. Last night Remus went out very late, and the full moon had almost risen. The werewolf might have gotten lose on the grounds before Remus could have enough time to get in the entrance."

"That fool!" Sirius hit his fist heavily against the wall. "He shouldn't've visited us! Being outside was very dangerous, and now I don't know what's happened to him!"

"Sirius, the only thing we can do now is to find Remus as quickly as possible; let's go out to search for any tracks he left."

Sirius pulled himself together again, and followed James out of the entrance to search.

"James, there!" Sirius called to James, pointing to a clump of bushes. Behind the bushes, there was a small pool of blood on the white snow; near it, there was a long trail of blood stains.

They traced the blood stains for about a dozen minutes, and on the border of Hogwarts and Hogsmeade, they found the stains disappear in front of a cottage.

Sirius and James exchanged an anxious look, then seeing nobody there, they climbed up the fences, got into the backyard, and went in opposite directions to search.

When Sirius came across a hovel, he saw some blood on the wooden door, and kicked the door open. The hovel was rather smelly, even mixing with the smell of blood.

In a dark corner, somebody was lying on a pile of straw.

_Oh, Merlin, no._ Sirius was shocked by the scene.

It was Remus lying there—his naked body exposed in the cold, blood all over it, and there was a very large wound on his left leg. A big iron collar was tied around his thin neck, binding him to a bar that connected to the wall.

"Remus!" Sirius dashed to his friend at once, bent down, and felt his pulse. Making sure Remus was still alive, Sirius took off his robe to cover the naked body, and held in his arms to make it warm.

The door of the hovel opened again, and James got in. "Merlin, is he all right?" James ran forwards, and cast a spell to unlock the collar.

"He must have been caught be a villager when he was a werewolf. We must take him away from here quickly, otherwise the people of this cottage will know who's the werewolf," James said urgently.

"Then I can see who captured Remus here, and make them regret how they treated my friend!" Sirius clenched his teeth.

"I know you're angry, but we can do it later, Sirius. We have to leave right away, quick!"

James supported Sirius, who was trying to carry Remus' still form on his back. He covered the unconscious boy with his robe, just in case Sirius' wasn't enough.

Fortunately, they succeeded in leaving the cottage without being seen by anybody, and soon they were striding on the Hogwarts grounds.

Sirius felt the body on his back shift a little, and heard Remus mumble, "…What…happened?"

"Don't worry, Remus. You're safe now. We're taking you to the hospital wing," Sirius said.

Feeling his friend's head rest on his shoulder again, Sirius fell into silence, and hastened his speed. James followed.

Things went more smoothly afterwards. After Madam Pomfrey gave Remus a quick check, and told them that there was no fatal wounds on him and he would be well very soon; Sirius and James went out to wait in the corridor.

To their surprise, Dumbledore was waiting there for them, and asked them to go to his office for a talk.

The talk was just as what they had expected—Dumbledore demanded that they not tell anyone that Remus was a werewolf, and thanked them for rescuing him.

Dumbledore's comparatively long speech was totally nonsense to Sirius, for he was rather eager to go back to the hospital wing to see how Remus was now.

Finally, when they finished drinking a cup of tea (in spite of the heat, Sirius finished it in only two mouthfuls), Dumbledore permitted them to go.

When they went back to the hospital wing, they were glad to be told by Madam Pomfrey that they could see Remus, for he was cured now.

But as Sirius approached Remus's bed, he said, "Where's he, Madam Pomfrey?"

"Isn't he in his bed?" Pomphrey answered from several beds away.

"No, there's no one here." James pointed to the empty bed.

"Damn!" Sirius cursed, and turned to leave.

"Wait, Sirius!" James called behind him.

But Sirius had run out of sight.

_Before he can do that, I have to stop him._ Sirius thought as he ran towards the Gryffindor dormitories.

However, it was too late—when Sirius arrived at their dormitory, he found all the books on Remus's desk were gone, and even the clothes folded up at the end of his friend's bed were no longer there.

"Sirius." He heard someone call him, and as he turned around, he saw Kingsley standing at the door.

"I saw Remus leave the dormitory with a large suitcase about half an hour ago," Kingsley said. "Is he going home?"

"No, I won't let him go anywhere." Sirius started to leave. "And thanks for telling me."

Kingsley smiled as Sirius passed him by and ran down to the corridor.

In a large snow-covered wildland, a boy was walking slowly and quite unsteadily with a huge suitcase. The tip of his nose was slightly pink from the frozen wind, but his cheeks were as pale as snow.

Suddenly, he felt a fit of fierce pain in his left leg, and fell down to the ground.

He raised his head, and looked around, not to look for help, for he had gotten used to solving this problem alone—it was only because when he suddenly stopped walking, he noticed he had been here before.

It was merely a month ago that his friends and him had sat at a bonfire and vowed their lifelong friendship, but now after a succession of days' snow falls, the meadow had become totally unrecognisable.

_Everything will change_, he sighed, feeling the coldness nip into his bones, then to his heart. He had never felt so cold before, as if he was drowning in a lonely, boundless frozen sea, never could leave, or even move.

_Let me drown…let me drown…_He stared at the sky for a long, long while.

"Remus!" he heard somebody shouting behind him.

_Oh, it couldn't be…_he knew that voice, and he always liked to hear it, for whenever its owner was around him, there would be a ray of light; although he had thought he would never hear the voice again, when he turned his head around, the person he saw was just the one he had expected—

"Sirius!" he cried out—if he was on his feet, he could have lost control and dashed forwards to embrace Sirius.

"Remus…you…fool…" Sirius panted, still out of breath. "Why did you leave us?"

"I'm a werewolf…" Remus said in a low voice, looking very sad, "I can't stay at Hogwarts and pretend to be your friend."

"You _are_ my friend! And James's, and Peter's!" Sirius said loudly. "Remember what we said that night?"

"But I thought you all abandoned me when I woke up in the hospital wing. You were not there…"

"We were in Dumbledore's office at that moment. We didn't mean to leave you alone."

"Really?" Remus looked at Sirius incredulously.

"Really." Sirius bent down to him. "We don't mind whether you're a werewolf or a vampire, we all love you as a friend of ours. And I think, you are not only as normal as us, you're the most perfect person I've ever met."

Hearing this, Remus could no longer keep from crying, and let tears roll down his cheeks. "Thanks, Sirius," he said.

"Stop crying like a baby," Sirius teased, and, to Remus's surprise, Sirius kissed him on the cheek, licking the tears with his tongue like a dog.

Before Remus realised what had happened, Sirius got to his feet, and gave him a hand.

"Remus, let's go back.," Sirius said, smiling, his handsome face full of radiance, and everything near him seemed to shine.

Remus nodded, and held his friend's hand, both of his cheeks burning fiercely.

**END**


End file.
